Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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It was with great sadness that we learned last week of the passing of Nelson Mandela - a global icon, a true champion of people of all nations and without question the greatest statesman of our generation. The mark he left on our world is indelible. His epic battle against injustice and discrimination is a powerful reminder of our responsibilities to stand up for what is right. Today, we can acknowledge a man whose name has come to represent the qualities of dignity and freedom and all that is right and good. His life was an example of forgiveness - not revenge - and was, therefore, an investment in trust and the future.

I was present in this Chamber when he addressed a joint sitting of the Houses of the Oireachtas on his visit to Ireland in 1990 just six months after his release from prison after 27 years. On that day, speaking in the Chamber, he showed no bitterness, no resentment and no hostility towards the regime that had denied him his freedom and denied his fellow South Africans their basic human rights. Instead, on that July afternoon, his message was one of hope for a better future for South Africa and love for his fellow man.

It was also one of gratitude to the Irish people for the welcome he had received but, above all else, for their wholehearted and often sacrificial support for the anti-apartheid movement. Indeed, he referenced our own past struggles as a country, all the while hopeful that the South African people too would have a country which, as he said, will, as the great Irish patriots said in the Proclamation of 1916, "Cherish all the children of the nation equally". He also referenced W. B. Yeats - "too long a sacrifice can make a stone of a heart" - and his refusal to allow that to be the case.

We recognise today, as did he, the 11 Dunnes Stores workers who saw the injustices at that time and who, despite great personal sacrifice in their young lives, did something about it. We can be proud today of the fact that Ireland pushed for and achieved EU sanctions against apartheid South Africa as well as forcing decolonisation and the fight against apartheid to the top of the UN agenda. The Irish Anti-Apartheid Movement, founded by Kader Asmal, was one of the most vocal and active chapters of the anti-apartheid movement globally. We should also be proud of all the Irish missionaries in apartheid South Africa who educated and cared for black South Africans when their Government had neglected them and failed to provide basic services.

So, on that beautiful day in July, Nelson Mandela expressed his appreciation to the Irish people for the solidarity and the assistance they gave to the people of South Africa in their struggle against the evil of apartheid. Today, we can be grateful to this giant among men who showed us so much, but most of all the incredible strength of the human spirit. That bar has now been raised even further by his lifetime of achievements. Indeed, I am reminded of the words of another great pacifist, Mahatma Gandhi, who stated: "I have nothing new to teach the world. Truth and non-violence are as old as the hills".

The long march to freedom has ended for the baby who was born in the year that the Great War ended. I recall his invocation to the Springbok team before its rugby world cup victory as a demonstration of the unity of the Africa nation. I recall his taking the hand of F. W. de Klerk in doing business on behalf of South Africa, in banishing the apartheid regime and in preventing civil war. I recall his meetings with kings, queens, leaders and politicians of all descriptions from all over the world, but I recall in particular his birthday celebration with 2,000 disabled children. I recall his ease with people in recognising that his own work was almost done. I suppose we can all recognise his journey in the words of William Ernest Henley in his poem "Invictus":

Out of the night that covers me,

Black as the Pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

For my unconquerable soul.

It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments the scroll.

I am the master of my fate:

I am the captain of my soul.

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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On behalf of the Labour Party, I wish to express my deep sadness on the death of Nelson Mandela, Madiba, a man who it can truly be said changed the world for the better. If I speak with great sadness, I also speak with the great conviction that the example Mandela set in fighting injustice, poverty and inequality will not be forgotten.

In his long life, Nelson Mandela was many things - the young boy born of the soil of the Eastern Cape, the educated, trailblazing young lawyer in Johannesburg, the political activist who educated his comrades and so many of his people, the prisoner whose personal fortitude gave strength to millions, the President who sought to bring about the unity of the South African people and create the rainbow nation, and the man who became an inspiration to the world.

He once stated: "It always seems impossible until it is done". I think it is fair to say that few of us genuinely thought that the hated apartheid system would ever end in our lifetimes. Nelson Mandela thought differently, and through his courage and conviction, the tyrannical system was brought crashing down.

As someone who was both a long-standing member and honorary secretary of the Irish Anti-Apartheid Movement and who lived in Africa for a number of years, I saw up close both the struggle to free South Africa and the solidarity shown by campaigners across the world. I lived in Tanzania in the early to mid-1980s. It was then the home from home for many African National Congress, ANC, exiles and I was privileged to get to know some of them, including the late Marius Schoon, who was working in the ANC Solomon Mahlangu Freedom College, SOMAFCO, in Mazimbu, central Tanzania. It was a time of some considerable apprehension among those exiles because the apartheid regime's military might was strengthening, a development that superficially at least appeared to guarantee its indefinite continuance.

Despite this military might, however, the apartheid system's fundamental weaknesses were being exposed to the world. The continued imprisonment on Robben Island of Mandela, Walter Sisulu and others was provoking intense international anger. It was the time when the call to boycott apartheid was being heard all over the world. Companies had to choose between active disinvestment or a consumer boycott, while even the US Congress was moving towards a comprehensive sanctions policy. Films such as "Cry Freedom" and "A World Apart" were filling cinemas and telling the world the stories of Donald Woods, Joe Slovo and Ruth First. Eventually, even the regime's military superiority came under threat, as it was unable to overcome or contain the freedom struggles in neighbouring countries like Namibia that threatened to surround South Africa with ANC-friendly states.

All of these separate components came together in one massive campaign to secure the release of Nelson Mandela and the political recognition of the ANC within South Africa. It was a powerful demonstration of how a mass movement could overcome the entrenched power of a dictatorial system. Numerous of my friends, colleagues, campaigners and I watched Mandela's historic release from prison in 1990 in the home of Kader Asmal and his wife Louise, the founders of the Irish Anti-Apartheid Movement. Our initial fear that something would happen to derail the release turned to overwhelming joy that he was finally free.

On that note, like the Taoiseach I want to salute all those Irish friends of South Africa, ranging from the many missionaries and organisations such as Trócaire to the Dunnes Stores workers, the wider trade union movement and people of all political convictions and none, who took Mandela's side and waged the fight to end apartheid.

While his release was a defining moment for campaigners, Mandela himself knew it was only a further step along the very long road. Years of patient negotiation for a new constitutional settlement, securing the agreement to free elections and the hard slog of office still lay ahead. Our own Kader Asmal was heavily involved in the constitutional talks and I recall vividly his description of the many obstacles that he had to overcome.

Nelson Mandela's approach to these obstacles was built on two foundations, one political and one personal. His political approach was based on the principles of the Freedom Charter, which was to him and the ANC the equivalent of the US Declaration of Independence. The charter, adopted in 1955 at Kliptown, set out in bold, unequivocal terms what he and his colleagues wanted to achieve. The first clause of the charter is stark and simple:

WE, THE PEOPLE OF SOUTH AFRICA, declare for all our country and the world to know:

that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, black and white,

and that no government can justly claim authority unless it is based on the will of all the people.

Principles are one thing, and the personal negotiating skills involved in delivering them are quite another. This was Nelson Mandela’s second pillar of strength. He displayed consummate negotiating skills, combining patience and a shrewd eye for political advantage. In his memoir, Kader Asmal mentioned that Mandela had been a renowned boxer in his youth. He said: “In his political sparring, thrusting and counter-thrusting, feinting and then going for the hammer blow, he reminded me of what the young Mandela must have been like in the ring: a wily and dangerous adversary.”

Mandela was at his best in those months after he became president and had to build a government of national unity, reconstruction and development. This is not to say his time in office was entirely smooth sailing, because it was not. He inherited massive expectations that democracy would bring instant results. That, of course, was impossible in a short time, but there were, and are, substantial achievements in areas such as education and housing. He passionately believed that “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”.

Of course, he also believed in forgiveness. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was a landmark achievement of Mandela’s term in office and was in keeping with his historic address to the Dáil in 1990. On that occasion, as the Taoiseach said, he quoted William Butler Yeats, “too long a sacrifice can make a stone of the heart”. However, Mandela told the Dáil that vengeance – resolving to meet brutality with brutality - was the wrong approach. He said: “We understood that to emulate the barbarity of the tyrant would also transform us into savages. We had to refuse that our long sacrifice should make a stone of our hearts.” This they did.

He might have sought to remain president for life as others had done. Instead, he chose to relinquish office after one term, and in so doing demonstrated that South Africa was truly democratic. He remained in the public eye as an immense moral force both within his own country and on the international stage. As Cyril Ramaphosa put it, Mandela’s job “was to set the course, not to steer the ship.” His memory will remain alive in Africa and all over the world as long as there are people who have a thirst for justice and freedom. At the turn of the millennium, he said in a magazine interview that he dreamed of an Africa at peace with itself. As someone who lived in Africa and holds it dear in my heart, I hope his dream is one day realised.

In Tanzania, the national anthem is “Mungu ibariki Afrika”, Swahili for “God bless Africa”. I was thrilled to hear the same line in Xhosa, “Nkosi sikelel' iAfrika”, also meaning "God bless Africa", in the national anthem of the new South Africa, the rainbow nation. Peace would be Africa’s best blessing, and Nelson Mandela did more than anyone to set the course. I and everyone in the Labour Party extend our deepest sympathies to his family and to the people of South Africa. Ní beidh a leithéid ann arís.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Laoch den chéad scoth atá á cheiliúradh againn anseo inniu. Tá sé tábhachtach go bhfuilimid bailithe anseo chun ár meas i dtaobh Nelson Mandela a chur in iúl. Ceannaire faoi leith a bhí ann - duine a thug dóchas, fís agus fuinneamh dá mhuintir féin. Fear lách, ciallmhar, stuama, críonna a bhí ann. Is iontach an phribhléid é dúinn bheith anseo chun ár meas air a léiriú.

There are moments in history when the times demand so much that it seems impossible to meet them. Intractable conflicts or cross-generational feuds can settle on human affairs like an immovable permafrost. Each age has problems that seem too much to confront and cause many to shy away or to slip into an easy but barren anger. In the crucible of such historic tests heroes emerge, men and women who rise to the challenges of their generation. Nelson Mandela was such a hero, one who will endure across the ages.

He was, as President Obama put it, “the great liberator of the 20th century”, a man who met the historic task with which his time was presented. The pitch black horizon of apartheid South Africa seemed hopeless to many. A slide into the bloodstained feuds of racial civil war appeared inevitable when the cracks appeared in the regime. Against that backdrop of mounting tension, the calm presence of Nelson Mandela forged a common destiny that once seemed impossible. The rainbow nation was born under the remarkable leadership of a visionary who saw above and beyond the narrow limits that preoccupied others. His story is the perfect antidote to the relentless cynicism that infects politics, his achievements are a rallying cry to those engaged in the world around them and his legacy is an enduring challenge to all of us to transcend our prejudice.

Many in Ireland heard that rallying cry and stood up against the grave injustice they saw in the apartheid regime. The 12 Dunnes Stores workers who spent such long days on the picket line from 1984 to 1987 embodied direct action against the fundamentally flawed regime. For those 11 women and one man, the example of the lone figure of Mandela condemned to hard labour in the desolation of Robben Island inspired them to take a stand. Tony Ward, Hugo McNeill, Donal Spring, Moss and Ciaran Fitzgerald, appalled by the sheer inequity of the South African state, spurned the chance to tour with the Irish team. They played their part in their way in rising to the challenges of the time. Mandela lauded the Irish as the “original freedom fighters”. These men and women made sure it rang true. It is easy in retrospect to join the cacophony of praise, but at the time it was a genuine moment of courage in that act of solidarity.

Years later, when I was speaking with Mandela’s successor, Thabo Mbeki, he impressed upon me the deep sense of appreciation that South Africans and particularly ANC members had for the work of the Irish anti-apartheid movement. Those who were located in the United Kingdom loved coming to Ireland for the more colourful and robust public gatherings and meetings of the anti-apartheid movement. They recall and recount them with some good humour and good stories, not all of it repeatable in this House. It illustrates that the small but personal acts of defiance by men and women on a small island on the fringes of Europe resonated with those in the midst of a great struggle against an historic injustice. Mandela's visit here in 1990 electrified the nation and underlined the deep bond between our two people.

Nelson Mandela embodied the fact that one man not only can make a difference but is morally obliged to, and across the globe people have responded to that call. The call has not faded with his death. The world from which he has departed still labours under grave injustices. The basic, inalienable equality of each man and woman by virtue of our shared spark of humanity remains a forlorn dream in many corners of the globe. South Africa found a true leader emerge as a beacon of light in the moral darkness of apartheid. Those of us who enjoy the basic rights of a democracy are charged with the solemn responsibility to support those people for whom government of, by and for the people is a distant hope.

Much ink has been spilled on the life of Mandela over the past days, and rightly so. However, I fear the humanity of the man may be buried under the avalanche of plaudits. The arc of his life’s journey from radical activist to peacemaker was undertaken at immense personal cost.

The physical toll of hard labour was matched by the personal loss of strained marriages and a distant family during his incarceration. We cannot know the emotional price paid on the long road to freedom.

His imprisonment was not the consequence of a flash of youthful zeal, like so many revolutionaries. He reflected upon what actions were necessary and committed himself to them. He stood as the first accused and was committed to living for his beliefs but also, if necessary, to die for them because he fully appreciated their immense value.

He was 42 years of age, and married with children, when he was put in prison. He put all of this at risk because he firmly believed in the greater good. He endured the solitude of the prison system and the physical toil of hard labour sustained by that belief. There are thousands of prisoners of conscience scattered across bleak redoubts of despotism who share in that sacrifice. To emerge from it without a heart turned to stone is a truly remarkable testament to the man.

His life urges us to rise to the challenges of our time. His legacy demands that we are willing to raise the awkward questions and probe the complacent consensus even when it is more comfortable to turn a blind eye. He leaves us with his own challenge to elevate ourselves beyond the immediate to see what is important and to work for that.

Nelson Mandela will be laid to rest in the beautiful sweeping panorama of the South African plains, in the village where he was born. Back then, in 1918, South Africa was engaged in the bloody twilight of the First World War where black and white alike fought and died in the mire of war. Over his lifetime, a dramatically racist society institutionalised its worst aspects with the creation of apartheid in 1948. The South Africa he leaves behind in 2013 is unimaginably different from the one he was born into. This is thanks in so many ways to the moral and political leadership he showed in crucial moments.

Those times placed a great task before Mandela but he rose to the challenges and in the face of impossible odds secured a remarkable achievement of the rainbow nation. Today our thoughts and prayers are with his family and his people, but our work, convictions and inspiration from him live on and, in that sense, so does he. His heroism is his legacy.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Ba mhaith liom mo chomhbhrón a thabhairt do chlann an iar-Uachtarán Mandela, do Uachtarán Zuma, do mhuintir na hAfraice Theas agus do phobal na hAfraice in Éirinn. Nelson Mandela, Madiba, was truly remarkable. He was a freedom fighter, political prisoner, negotiator, healer, peace maker, father, grandfather and husband. He was a friend to those engaged in struggle for justice across the globe. He believed in Ubuntu - chreid sé gur ár scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine. He was a friend to the people of Ireland and many people here were his friends, particularly the heroic Dunne Stores strikers who took a stand when those in power did not.

The injustice of apartheid was an obscenity to humanity. Interestingly, given our own experience, the former South African Prime Minister, John Vorster, once famously said he would swap apartheid legislation for one clause of the infamous Special Powers Act in the North.

The ANC was banned, censored and its political actions were crushed. In the 1950s and early 1960s, ANC activists debated how best to challenge the state. Speaking of that period, Madiba said:

We have always believed in non-violence as a tactic. Where conditions demanded that we should use non-violence, we would do so. Where conditions demanded that we should depart from non-violence, we would do so.

In prison for those decades, Madiba maintained his international perspective. In his cell, in common with all political prisoners, he was allowed a calendar on which he marked significant events. On 5 May 1981, he wrote a simple single line: "IRA martyr, Bobby Sands, dies". That was a hand-written tribute on a paper calendar on a cell wall in South Africa, which recognises the bond of those who struggle for justice. His note on that prison wall is recognition of the courage and self sacrifice of the ten republican hunger strikers of our time. Walter Sisulu later told me that all the ANC prisoners marked and commemorated each of the hunger strikers who died, including Kieran Doherty T.D.

Today the world is in mourning. The people of South Africa have lost their leader and father. Humanity has lost our greatest statesman. Madiba was a leader who by his courage demonstrated that it is possible to reconcile differences. By his example, he showed us that it is possible to build peace out of conflict - something we tried to do on our own island - that a better and more equal future based on fairness is possible, and that unity can be forged out of division.

In the hard years when the western powers were against him, when he was vilified as a terrorist and denounced as a criminal, he kept the faith. He showed perseverance and vision. There are lessons in all of this for us but particularly for the people of the island of Ireland of all persuasions as we continue the necessary and challenging task of building the peace.

I first saw Nelson Mandela when he visited Dublin in 1990. That was the day when the Irish soccer team returned home. When he appeared, a section of the crowd began to chant "Oo, ah, Paul McGrath's da". So the good humour of Ireland shone through.

In 1995, I and several other Sinn Féin activists travelled to South Africa at the invitation of the ANC to speak to senior figures who had been centrally involved in the process of negotiations. That was when I met Madiba for the first time. One of the first demonstrations I ever attended was in Dublin against apartheid and the visit of the Springboks rugby team. I have been a long-time supporter of the anti-apartheid movement, so I was delighted to be meeting with one of my heroes.

During the conflict there was also a close working relationship between Irish republicans and the ANC. The late Kadar Asmal did tremendous work here in the leadership of the Irish anti-apartheid movement, along with his wife Louise. He was not a supporter of the IRA. In his book, which was mentioned by the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Burton, Kadar told how the IRA provided practical training, advice and assistance with military operations to MK. Kadar said that the famous attack of 31 May 1980 on the Sasol oil refinery near Johannesburg was carried out with the assistance of the Irish Republican Army.

Walter Sisulu, Cyril Ramaphosa, Thabo Mbeki, Ronnie Kasrils and many others in the ANC leadership were pleased to remember the long commitment of Irish republicans to their cause, as was Madiba himself. For our group the highlight of the intense process of meetings was with Madiba. He was self-effacing, modest, totally relaxed and very focused. He was also tough, stubborn, determined and committed as he needed to be to survive apartheid, and to survive over two and a half decades in prison with hard labour. He was immovable on core principles, issues and values, but pragmatic on tactics and other matters.

It is also interesting that the British Government at the time laboured and lobbied hard for Madiba not to meet with me, for what that is worth. When it was clear that the ANC and Madiba were determined that the visit would go ahead, the British Government lobbied that there should be no handshake or photograph. He ignored them. Along with other Sinn Féin representatives, I have been privileged and greatly honoured to have met Madiba many times after that in South Africa, here in Ireland and in Britain.

Pribhléid agus onóir mór a bhí ann dom. He was hugely supportive of the Irish peace process. On several occasions when visiting Ireland activists from the ANC and former MK went into prisons and talked with Republican prisoners about the peace process. Nelson Mandela had an enormous depth of understanding of the twists and turns of our process and knew that there was an onus upon Governments as well as those involved in struggle to resolve issues. He believed, as I and all thinking people believe, that there is an onus to create the necessary environment for peaceful solutions.

Despite his age and, when I last met with him, increased physical frailty his mind was as sharp as a razor. He was conversant in world affairs, affairs on his own continent, the injustice of the wars in Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan. He was a very remarkable human being. I mo thuairim, ba é Nelson Mandela ceann de na ceannairí is fearr a raibh ann ariamh. Mar a deir an t-amhrán: "Sé mo laoch, Mo Ghile Mear".

All of us remember the Special Olympics in Ireland in 2003. It was a wonderful ócáid galánta. When I met Nelson Mandela after that event he was as taken by all of the young athletes with whom he had met during the course of that great event as he was about issues to do with the North and the need for Governments to move on the necessary business of building peace.

He will continue to inspire. He will continue in death, as he did in life, to encourage oppressed people everywhere. In this way, his legacy will live on. One does not have to be a Nelson Mandela or Madiba to do the small things that make things better for those who suffer from injustice and deprivation and do not have freedom. If we all did that in a small way then heroes like Nelson Mandela would not have had to do the big things they had to do.

Walter Sisulu was a wonderful man and a life-long conspirator, political prisoner and comrade of Nelson Mandela. Anyone who has the time to do so should read Mandela's farewell to him when he died, one line of which states: "Go well, rest in peace Madiba, hero among heroes". Ní bheidh a leithéid ann arís. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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I wish to share time with Deputies John Halligan and Finian McGrath.

Frank Feighan (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Is that agreed? Agreed.

Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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Is ócáid bhrónach é bás Nelson Mandela, i slí amháin, ach níl sé brónach i slí eile toisc go bhfuil faoiseamh aige anois ón bhfulaingt, ón bpian agus ón drochshláinte a bhí aige le déanaí.

The title of Nelson Mandela's autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom, encapsulates his life and work, which title he adapted from a statement by the late Indian Prime Minister Nehru entitled No Easy Walk to Freedom. For Mandela and his comrades it was a long walk to freedom. It certainly was not an easy walk to freedom for them. The opening paragraph of his autobiography describes the name given to him by his father, a name which literally means "pulling the branch of a tree" and colloquially, more accurately, means "a trouble-maker". I guess that is what he was for most, if not all, of his life.

Nelson Mandela acknowledged being a member of the royal household, although trained not for rule but to counsel the rulers of the tribe. We know he was a ruler. In his writings and speeches and in the many roles he held he was a counsellor. His words and philosophy will be sources of wisdom, enlightenment and guidance for those in leadership roles, locally, nationally and personally.

He stood up to the political situation and tyranny, exploitation and oppression of his people. His commitment was to democracy. When speaking from the dock at his trial in 1964 he said that fear should not be allowed stand in the way of equality. He also said that his ideal was of a democratic and free society in which all persons lived together in harmony and with equal opportunities, an ideal for which he was prepared to die and which resulted in his being imprisoned on Robben Island for 27 years. Another quality was his humility. Following his release in 1990 he said in Cape Town that he stood before the people as their humble servant, placing his remaining years in the hands of his people.

The military wing of the ANC was formed in 1960, at which time the organisation resorted to an armed struggle. For Nelson Mandela and the giants of the Anti-Apartheid Movement, Walter Sisulu and Oliver Tambo, this was a defensive action against the violence of apartheid. It was in reaction to the massacre at Sharpeville, which was a peaceful protest met with violence. At that time he stated: "When all channels of peaceful protest had been barred to us a decision was made to embark on a violent form of political struggle." They then reached the point of, as described by Robert Frost in "The Road not Taken", two roads diverged in a yellow wood and had to decide whether to continue on the road to violence or take the other road. They chose the other road, of which Mandela said: "That made all the difference". When being sworn in as President of South Africa in 1994 he committed to constructing a complete, just and lasting peace. He said at that time that it was: "Time for the healing of wounds and to bridge the chasms that divide". Nelson Mandela and his comrades were able to turn from bitterness and hatred to reconciliation. There are many people today whose lives are consumed by bitterness and hatred, which bitterness and hatred brings suffering for other people.

I also speak today as the chairperson of the Irish section of the Association of European Parliamentarians with Africa, AWEPA, which was established in 1984 out of the struggle to eradicate apartheid. At that time, many European Parliaments set up groups to campaign for the abolition of apartheid and to create international pressure for Mandela's release from prison. On his release Nelson Mandela met AWEPA members and encouraged them to continue their work to help strengthen democracy in Africa. His wife, Graca Machel, along with Archbishop Desmond Tutu are members of AWEPA's eminent advisory board. That work continues. We know that democracy in Africa is constantly being challenged. Today, it is the Central African Republic, yesterday it was DRC, the day before it was Mali and tomorrow, who knows? So many countries are in fragile situations. There is certainly no easy road to freedom for these countries. Nelson Mandela sought justice, peace, work, bread, water and salt. Many countries are now deprived of these basic rights. The developing countries of Africa are under pressure from a different form of colonialism in the form of multinational companies who do not pay their just taxes. We see this in the competition between land for food for the developing countries and land for biofuels for developed countries.

In his 1994 speech, Nelson Mandela referred to the amnesty for the various categories of people then serving time in prison. I hope his words then will reach those countries in which prisoners are being held in unfair and unjust circumstances without charge and the right to a fair trial, be that in Northern Ireland, Israel, Sri Lanka, Colombia, Azerbaijan, Kurdistan or the Cuban five situation in America. Mandela had a particular interest in Cuba. He said he was inspired by the Cuban revolution of 1959 because Castro in Cuba opposed apartheid at a time when other countries were not supporting the ANC. Fidel Castro visited South Africa and Nelson Mandela visited Cuba. To see the American President, Barrack Obama, and Cuban President, Raúl Castro on the same platform today shaking hands was very moving. President Obama's words today, which is International Human Rights Day, that, "There are two many of us who happily embrace Mandela's legacy of racial reconciliation but passionately resist even modest reforms that would challenge chronic poverty and growing inequality", were interesting.

We speak today about Nelson Mandela as a political leader but he was also a husband, father, grandfather and friend. I sympathise with all those who miss and mourn him.

Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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Hear, hear.

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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It would be impossible to do justice to the remarkable influence which the former South African President and national leader had on his country and the world. Without a doubt, his reforms and ideals are something to which current political leaders should look for the betterment of their nations.

In the many tributes from all over the world, Mandela has been described as an inspiration, an icon, a luminary, a humanitarian, a radical, a leader. It is certainly difficult to find a comparative figure in history who was an iconic dissident figure and central to building a new political system. Some of the more interesting summaries and recollections I have read have drawn sharp contrasts with the lack of long-term vision which marks today's world leaders apart from Mandela. Others have noted how younger generations might be inclined to think on Mandela as a kind, elderly statesman. One could forgive the mistake, given the direction that some of the revisionist celebrations of his life have taken. One cannot but be struck at the hypocrisy of many who now praise the life of this former political prisoner. One of the most compelling articles of all was an obituary in The New York Times.

The obituary quoted an interview with Mandela in 2007 in which he was openly scornful about his successor. Apparently, Mandela had requested that the New York Timesnot publish these comments until after his death. On the question of keeping hatred in check after everything he had endured, Mandela said: "Hating clouds the mind. It gets in the way of strategy. Great leaders cannot afford to hate".

Leaders like Nelson Mandela are thin on the ground these days and strong ideals and convictions are almost as scarce. However, his unwavering support and advocacy for social inclusiveness is something that every government, including our Government, should strive towards.

The gap between Ireland's rich and poor has widened dramatically in recent years. According to a new analysis by Social Justice Ireland, the top 20% of earners have increased their disposable income in Ireland since 2008 by 20% while the poorest in our society have lost 18.4% of real disposable income. As leaders of all parties stand today and pay tribute to the socially inclusive ideals of Nelson Mandela, I urge them to consider the increasing inequality which they are allowing to develop far closer to home and the shadow which this will cast over future generations.

Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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I thank the Acting Chairman for the opportunity to speak to this important and sad occasion following the death of the great Nelson Mandela. I offer my sympathies to his immediate family and to all the people of South Africa.

When I think of Nelson Mandela, I think of the words inclusion, grace, dignity, love of country, humour, courage, reconciliation and a great sense of humanity. People in this country identify with Nelson Mandela because of our past and because of his contribution to our current peace process. Our histories are intertwined from the stonebraker's yard in Robben Island to the yard in Kilmainham Gaol and those of us in the Dáil today should never forget it. Democracy and freedom should never be taken for granted. If we are genuine and serious about respecting and honouring Mandela we must strive each day for these ideals. Democracy justice, equality and freedom are real issues that have to be cherished. I urge all Deputies not only to talk about these ideals but to come out every day and implement them.

I pay tribute to the Dunnes Stores strikers, who, in 1984, took a stand against apartheid long before it was popular in this part of the world. I remember well attending the pickets and giving a few bob to the strikers for their fun when the needed it. Today, I salute the Dunnes Stores strikers but I also commend and thank people like Brendan Archbold and John Mitchell from the Irish Distributive and Administrative Union, IDATU, on their magnificent work on this important issue. They took a stand long before it became fashionable and trendy.

In honour of Nelson Mandela and the Dunnes Stores strikers it is important to state that the struggle for freedom and justice and equality still goes on today. We must be vigilant on issues like racism and sectarianism in our country. Let us not fool ourselves or become complacent. They are out there and we need to show a Mandela-type leadership on these matters. The same goes for our own peace process. Many in the House and outside need to focus on reconciliation, justice, healing, equality and a respect for difference and diversity. That is the Ireland that I want to work for, that is the new Ireland we should all push for and that is the new Ireland that I want to see North and South. This new Ireland should be based on the principles and ideals of Nelson Mandela, who, in turn, based his vision on our patriots.

Let us use this sad day to remember Nelson Mandela and his greatness, but let us also push on and stand with the Palestinian people, the Cuban people and the oppressed throughout world and build a world based on freedom, justice and equality. May he rest in peace.

Frank Feighan (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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That concludes statements following the death of Nelson Mandela.

Peter Mathews (Dublin South, Independent)
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Would it be possible for the others to say a few brief words?

Frank Feighan (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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The order of the day only allows for leaders of the groups to contribute.